Lifeguards Lauded For Rescuing Boy

Three Valley lifeguards were honored Tuesday for saving a 10-year-old boy at Liberty Lake County Park in August.

County parks officials credit Anna Agnew, Kathy Parsons and Tammy Swingle with pulling Cody Driver from dark, murky water and reviving him with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Driver sank to the bottom after jumping from the dock in the swimming area. He was hospitalized for two days following the Aug. 24 accident.

In the week following the accident, Driver’s parents criticized the lifeguards for not responding immediately when told their son had sunk from sight.

A county investigation showed that the lifeguards “did everything right,” said Wyn Birkenthal, county parks and recreation manager.

Agnew accepted a plaque from county commissioners Tuesday night, as her family sat in the audience.

“Heroes are born, they just don’t happen,” Commissioner Phil Harris told the lifeguard.

, DataTimes